These drugs are used to assist a sexual assault. Sexual assault is any type of sexual activity that a person does not agree to. These drugs are powerful and dangerous. They can be slipped into your drink when you are not looking.
The drugs can make you become weak and confused so that you are unable to refuse sex or defend yourself. If you are drugged, you might not remember what happened while you were drugged. The term "date rape" can be misleading because the person who commits the crime might not be dating the victim. Rather, it could be an acquaintance or stranger.
These drugs are also known as "club drugs" because they tend to be used at dance clubs, concerts, and "raves." These drugs are also used to help people commit other crimes, like robbery and physical assault.

The three most common "date rape" drugs are: Rohypnol, GHB, and Ketamine.
-- Rohypnol is the trade name for flunitrazepam. Abuse of two similar drugs appears to have replaced Rohypnol in some parts of the United States. These are: clonazepam (marketed as Klonopin in the U.S. and Rivotril in Mexico) and alprazolam (marketed as Xanax). On the other hand, Rohypnol is prescribed for sleep problems and to assist anesthesia before surgery.
Rohypnol is also known as: Circles, Forget Pill, Lunch Money, Mind Erasers, R-2, Rib, Roach, Ruffies, Trip-and-Fall

-- GHB, which is short for gamma hydroxybutyric acid. GHB was recently made legal in the U.S. to treat problems from narcolepsy (a sleep disorder).
GHB is also known as: Bedtime Scoop, Cherry Meth, Easy Lay, Gamma 10, G-Juice, Goop, Liquid Ecstasy, PM, Salt Water

-- Ketamine is legal for use as an anesthetic for humans and animals. It is mostly used on animals. Veterinary clinics are robbed for their ketamine supplies.
Ketamine is also known as: Black Hole, Bump, Cat Valium, Green, Jet, K-Hole, Kit Kat, Purple, Special K, Super Acid

Rohypnol comes as a pill that dissolves in liquids. Some are small, round, and white. Newer pills are oval and green-gray in color. When slipped into a drink, a dye in these new pills makes clear liquids turn bright blue and dark drinks turn cloudy. But this color change might be hard to see in a dark drink, like cola or dark beer, or in a dark room. Also, the pills with no dye are still available. The pills may be ground up into a powder.
GHB has a few forms: a liquid with no odor or color, white powder, and pill. It might give your drink a slightly salty taste. Mixing it with a sweet drink, such as fruit juice, can mask the salty taste. Ketamine comes as a liquid and a white powder.

The effects of Rohypnol can be felt within 30 minutes of being drugged and can last for several hours. If you are drugged, you might look and act like someone who is drunk. You might have trouble standing. Your speech might be slurred. Or you might pass out. Rohypnol can also cause sleepiness and confusion.

GHB takes effect in about 15 minutes and can last 3 or 4 hours. It is very potent: A very small amount can have a big effect. So it is easy to overdose on GHB. Most GHB is made by people in home or in street "labs." GHB can cause drowsiness, loss of consciousness, and dream-like feeling.

Ketamine is very fast-acting. You might be aware of what is happening to you, but unable to move. It also causes memory problems. Later, you might not be able to remember what happened while you were drugged. In addition, Ketamine can cause dream-like feeling and lost sense of time and identity.

Is alcohol a date rape drug?
Any drug that can affect judgment and behavior can put a person at risk for unwanted or risky sexual activity. Alcohol is the drug most commonly used to help commit sexual assault. When a person drinks too much alcohol, it is harder to say no to sexual advances. In fact, people who want to commit sexual assault or other crimes prefer to mix alcohol with Rohypnol, or GHB, or Ketamine, because this mix will have a very strong effect on their victims.

The club drug "ecstasy" (MDMA) has been used to commit sexual assault. It can be slipped into someone's drink without the person's knowledge. Also, a person who willingly takes ecstasy is at greater risk of sexual assault. Ecstasy can make a person feel "lovey-dovey" towards others. Once under the drug's influence, a person is less able to sense danger or to resist a sexual assault.